


Conscience is a Faint, Unpleasant Sound

by apollosflame (lalliana)



Series: Reform!Verse [2]
Category: CP Coulter's Dalton - Fandom, Dalton Academy Series
Genre: Alternate Universe - Reform, Blood, Dubious Consent, Light Bondage, M/M, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Non-Graphic Rape/Non-Con, Suicide Attempt, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-15
Updated: 2014-06-15
Packaged: 2018-02-04 16:55:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,664
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1786372
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lalliana/pseuds/apollosflame
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <em>“We’ll help you get him back, Knave,” a familiar voice said softly, warm breath brushing Logan’s ear.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“We know how important your Cheshire Kitten is to you -” said an identical voice, a small distance behind the first.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“- and how angry you are that he was taken.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“But you can’t help him if you alienate those that can help you by starting a war.”</em>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	Conscience is a Faint, Unpleasant Sound

_**| Three Weeks Ago |** _

_The air in the room was tense. Barely-contained violence and anger crackled from the three prefects and throughout the entire facility, putting everyone on edge as they waited for some sign that a war was about to begin. The room was small, barely seven feet in each direction, and the only furniture was a small, circular table set up for just these meetings; not large enough for more than the three people sitting around it. Breathing in stale air, the three prefects sent suspicious glances to each other, two pairs of blue eyes assessing the green-eyed blond carefully, wondering what had happened for such a meeting to be called._

_It was rare for just the three prefects to meet; usually, at least two of their closest followers were present at all meetings, unless specifically requested otherwise. For the Stuart Kingpin to call a meeting of just_  them _meant that whatever he had to discuss was probably sensitive._

Very _sensitive._

_“What’s this about?” one of the blue-eyed boys finally asked, sharing a glance with the other brunet, before glancing back at the blond warily._

_The blond leaned back in his chair, his eyes unreadable but dangerous, fingers tapping a short tattoo into the wooden table. He was watching the two brunets closely, as though there were a chess board in his brain and he was wondering how they’d react to what he was about to play. Surprisingly, it wasn’t his usual rival that his gaze rested the most on - instead, it was the Englishman, the one who often played mediator in their meetings._

_“The new boy,” he eventually said, eyes boring steadily into the sharp blue eyes of the Hanover King. “Clavell, I believe. What is he in for?”_

_The two brunets exchanged a wary glance, shifting nervously in their chairs and watching the blond with more suspicion than before. It was never good when the Kingpin took an interest in one of the other’s subordinates._

_“You know why he’s here,” the Hanover said slowly, his eyes darting over the Stuart’s form as if waiting for him to spring._

_However, the Blond just nodded and leaned forward, elbows on the table and clasped hands covering his mouth. His eyes were steady, sharp as gems. “Yes,” he said, unblinking. “But have you discovered any other, previously unknown abilities or knowledge he may have?”_

_The two others straightened abruptly. Finally, the reason why the secrecy was necessary had come to light._

_“No,” the man being questioned said, leaning forward as well. “Do you have any reason to think he would?”_

_The blond paused, eyes going distant and flashing briefly with his famous anger. The two others tensed, hoping that this meeting wouldn’t be the one that tipped the fragile balance of the facility, throwing everything into violence and chaos and destroying everything they had worked towards._

_But again, the blond didn’t strike, instead taking a deep breath and holding it, closing his eyes. A few seconds passed before he let the breath go, eyes a bit calmer when they were opened, enough that the two blue-eyed boys relaxed, knowing it wasn’t anything they had done to earn the Stuart’s ire._

_“As I’m sure you three know, Julian has been the target of an unknown gunman,” the blond said. “While I’m not sure Clavell is the gunman in question, ever since I’ve started looking into it I’ve noticed that he…_ watches _Julian.”_

 _The third boy - who had been quiet until now - snorted. “_ Everyone _watches Julian,” he said with a roll of his eyes. “Almost no-one is straight when it comes to that boy.”_

 _“I’m aware,” the blond said dryly, only a slight twitch of his eyebrows showing his true feelings on the matter. “But I don’t mean like that. I’m aware he’s interested in Julian, though his offer was declined. But he doesn’t just watch Julian - he_ studies _him, like he’s memorizing his every move and cataloging them.”_

_The Hanover frowned, staring at the Stuart somberly, knowing how dangerous such an action could be in their circles, how badly things could turn out if the small hint was ignored. “You’re sure?”_

_A single blond eyebrow rose, the first sarcastic gesture they’d had from the blond since the beginning of the meeting. “Would I call this meeting if I wasn't?”_

_A single, grudging nod was all he got in response, then the Hanover was standing, opening the single door to quietly speak with someone outside and closing the door after the brief conversation. He continued to assess the blond with his eyes while they waited, and the Stuart stared blandly back. Just accepting the usually aggravating calculation without complaint, not wanting to do anything that may throw his accusations into question. He would go along with the suspicions, so long as it kept Julian safe._

_The other blue-eyed brunet, the Figurehead of Windsor, watched the two curiously. It was well known to all involved that if the Stuart accused any of those under his protection of such actions, it would only be accepted if there was hard evidence. The very fact that the King of Hanover accepted the suspicions so readily showed he’d already noticed something different about the new kid, something that made the Stuart’s concerns unsurprising._

_A few, long minutes later, there was a knock at the door, and a tall, dark-haired boy entered, eyes darting around the room quickly. A brief flicker of some unnamed, but undoubtedly dark emotion darted through his grey eyes when they landed on the blond. The Stuart, in return, tensed, eyes narrowing dangerously and his lip curling in a faint snarl, the air around him suddenly electric with suppressed violence. Quickly, the seated Windsor moved to stand just to the side of the enraged blond, placing a firm hand on his shoulder in warning. The blond sent him a heated glare, but didn’t react otherwise, green gaze firmly set on Clavell to closely observe his every move._

_Two others flanked Clavell, eyes watching the seated blond warily. They were both Hanover’s, the right and left hand of their leader, and though they were obviously suspect of the Stuart's intentions, they knew enough to obey their leader’s orders. Still, they shifted restlessly in the small room, the tense air of the facility making them jumpy despite themselves, and they looked ready to spring at the slightest hint of danger. It wasn’t ideal, but it was understandable._

_“Clavell,” the King said, walking over to stand on the Kingpin’s other side, “it has come to our attention that your scrutiny of the Stuart, Larson, has become... suspiciously blatant. It is causing some unwanted tension in the house.”_

_Clavell glowered, grey eyes snapping in annoyance at the blond. “It’s not unknown that Wright’s judgement is clouded when it comes to Julian. From what I’ve heard, he nearly started a war with Windsor after the twins bedded him.”_

_Wright’s hands twitched at the crudeness of the phrase, but otherwise he didn’t move. “I did, because with all the bruises left on his body, along with his limp I had assumed that they’d hurt him. I protect me and mine, Clavell,” he said, voice low. “It’s never been something I’ve been quiet about.”_

_Grey eyes narrowed, but before Clavell could say anything else his superior broke in. “Nevertheless, it’s becoming a problem, Clavell. We want you to stay away from him.”_

_“Bancroft -”_

_“Do you understand, Clavell?” Bancroft asked dangerously, the two other Hanover’s tensing as well. “Or do you need some clarification?”_

_Clavell hesitated, gaze darting from Wright to Bancroft, as if suddenly aware of his lack of power. “No, sir,” he said eventually, like the words were being dragged out against his will. “I understand.”_

_“Good,” Bancroft said with a nod. “Then you’re dismissed.”_

_With one final, heated glare at Wright, Clavell left, hands clenching spasmodically. All eyes in the room followed him as he left, and the tension in the room shifted, no longer dangerously on edge. Instead, there was a strange awareness that something wasn’t quite right, and that they needed to be careful around the seemingly quiet boy._

_“Spencer, Danny,” Bancroft said, still watching the door somberly, “I want you to keep tabs on him, make sure he stays in line.” The blue of his eyes was sharp as he glanced to his trusted friends._

_“And do whatever it takes to stop him, if necessary.”_

* * *

_**| Now |** _

Logan was woken by the ear-splitting screech of alarms.

His eyes snapped open, and he was out of bed, gun in hand before he even realized what the sound was. A frown immediately crossed his face, as that sound had’t been heard in a long time, and it was never good when it was. Usually it was accompanied by the loud clunking of locking doors, but since the nightly ‘Lights Out’ hadn’t been lifted yet, he figured the only other sound would be -

Ah, yes. There it was: the loud thump of combat boots jogging down the hall, guards quickly securing every inch of the facility. Batons, tasers, and even guns would be in hand to subdue any resisting detainees by any means necessary. Extremely dangerous, but Logan supposed that the guards had every reason to take such precautions around them. He walked to the door, glancing out of the small, square window curiously, wondering who had done what to garner such a reaction from their warden. It would have to be something out of their usual pranks for Ramsey to hit the panic button, and they could get pretty far with their games without so much as a scowl from the woman.

So he was quite surprised when he looked out and saw the Head Marshal standing before his door, fist raised to knock. They stared at each other for a short second, then the woman’s eyes narrowed, and she motioned, with a small jerk of her head, for him to move aside. Logan moved quickly, shoving the gun into the back of his pants and brain whirling as he thought of any reasons she’d be at his door. There were many explanations for why he could be under scrutiny - many reasons why he probably  _should_  be in solitary confinement - but none so overtly rebellious as to call the wrath of the Marshall down on his shoulders.

Warily, he watched as the shorter woman entered, her red hair in a tight bun at the crown of her head and dressed in a somber black suit. Ramsey glanced quickly around the room, then turned to him with a piercing gaze. “Do you know where Larson is?”

Logan blinked. She was here after  _Julian_? What the hell had he gotten himself into this time? “I have no idea,” he answered, tilting his head and flickering his gaze between her eyes, curious. “He almost always makes it to Lights Out on time, and the one time he didn’t he was with the Brightman twins.”

It was obvious that it wasn’t the answer she was looking for, and she frowned, lips thinning and brow creased. “I see,” was all she said, then turned on her heel and left, door slamming closed behind her with a decisive click.

Rushing back to the window, Logan just caught a flash of navy scrubs, and the white and yellow lines of a stretcher with red blossoming against the blankets. It couldn’t have been Julian, he was sure, or else Ramsey wouldn’t be asking after him. But someone was hurt - badly, if the speed the EMS’s were using was any indication - and Julian had gone missing sometime between Logan leaving his room a few minutes before Lights Out, and the body on the stretcher being found just minutes ago.

Not good.  _Very_  not good.

There was a crackling sound from the speaker above his door, then Ramsey’s voice was echoing throughout his room and the entire facility. “Ladies and Gentlemen,” she said, voice grainy and distorted from the barely used, ancient intercom system, “There has been an emergency in the boy’s wing, and it is important that it is investigated as swiftly as possible. Due to this, the entire facility will be placed on lock-down until lunch, at which time the normal schedule will continue. Thank you for your time.” There was the sound of something being hung up, then silence.

Lock-down until Lunch, Logan thought with a groan.  _Wonderful_. He sighed, turning to dig in his closet for his smuggled electric kettle and french press, along with his beloved coffee supply. There was no way he was going to be able to sleep, the adrenaline and small coil of worry wiping any thoughts of returning to bed from his mind. Instead, he plugged in the kettle and turned to his desk, resigned to catching up on his homework and private accounts until the buildings were released from the temporary lock-down.

 _Then_ he could get some answers.

* * *

_Everything was beautiful._

_Clouds drifted swiftly through the blueblueblue sky, teasing him with glittering light, silver and white and a little grey drifting like blobs of fluffy paint across his vision. He smiled at the clouds, wanted to wave to them but he was much too relaxed, felt like all the muscles in his body had turned to liquid, like he was sinking into the worn leather seat and he’d soon become part of it, like a_ personseat _._

_He giggled a bit at the word, and something warm and firm was on him, somewhere below his floating head._

_“It’s going to be all right, Julian” said a voice, and he giggled again, because of course it was._

_Everything was beautiful._

* * *

Blinking his eyes, Logan glanced up at the loud  _thunk_  of locks being moved. Glancing up at the clock, he was surprised to find it was already lunch-time, the morning lost in paragraphs of books and long lists of numbers. Logan stretched and stood, sliding his accounts into the hidden compartment of his desk, then striding swiftly from the room. Other detainees scrambled out of his way, averting their eyes carefully as he passed by. Whatever had happened would need to be discussed immediately by the three leaders, and getting in Logan way would mean punishment. It was nice, Logan thought with a devious smirk, to be obeyed so swiftly and completely. Necessary, of course, for the three buildings to continue to run smoothly - but it didn’t mean he couldn’t enjoy the complete power he held over his boys, occasionally. He never abused the privileges, as it would be  _asking_  for rebellion, and he was careful to be fair to those under his care, for they were  _his_.

Perhaps less so then Julian and Derek, but his all the same.

As if summoned by his thoughts, Derek fell into step beside Logan silently, nodding in greeting. Logan gave him a half-smile, and nodded in return. “Find out anything?” Logan asked as they walked through the thin, grey halls towards the main communal area.

“No,” Derek said, a hint of annoyance in his voice. “We don’t know anything except what Ramsey said over the speakers. Even Caterpillar’s been unavailable. And where’s Jules got off to?”

“Missing,” Logan said, sharing a somber glance with the brunet. “Ramsey came in my room this morning, asking if I’d any idea where he is.” Shaking his head, he opened the door and stepped out into the bright sunlight, blinking rapidly to adjust his sight. He could feel the eyes of everyone in the complex turn to him, watching warily. “Other then that, all I know is that someone was badly hurt -  I saw the EMS’s rushing out with a gurney.”

Derek let out a low whistle, brow creasing in thought. “And Jules is somehow involved?”

A nod.

“Damn,” Derek muttered, looking worried. “He usually keeps his head down. What the fuck?”

“That’s exactly what I want to know,” said Logan, sharing another glance with the shorter boy before sliding into one of the many benched tables. Clasping his hands and leaning his forearms on the table, he took in the grave expressions of the surrounding boys. The fission of worry grew larger.

Bancroft and Amos were both across from him, Blaine and the twins hovering behind Amos, as Derek was to Logan. But, surprisingly, only Willis was shadowing Bancroft; Abbot was nowhere in sight. Amos looked serious and calm, but Bancroft was and angry, hands fisted tight enough that the knuckles were white as his face. It was a strange sight, indeed; for though Amos and Logan were known for getting angry and flying off the handle, Bancroft was almost terminally calm, unfazed by anything that happened around him.

“Where’s Larson?” Amos asked, glancing curiously between Derek and Logan, voicing the one thing that seemed to be on the four Windsor’s minds.

The Hanover’s, however, didn’t look surprised.

“I don’t know,” Logan said slowly, fixing his eyes on Bancroft’s, challenging him to lie. “Where’s Abbot?”

A muscle jumped in Bancroft’s jaw, which was almost all that Logan needed to know. “Danny’s currently being rushed to the ER,” Bancroft said evenly, eyes flashing with restrained fury. It was odd to see the expression in others, as it was something Logan had become famous for. “A guard found him in Stuart Hall, unconscious and bleeding out.” He sighed, looked down at his hands. “They’re not sure he’s going to make it.”

Logan nodded, but watched Bancroft with a guarded gaze. “The Stuarts -”

“It wasn’t the Stuarts,” Bancroft interrupted. He huffed out an unhappy sound and ran his hands through his hair in an uncharacteristically shaken gesture. Taking another deep breath, he visibly steeled himself and continued, “He was assigned to watch over Clavell that night.” He swallowed, then met Logan’s eyes. “Clavell is also missing.”

Logan closed his eyes. Felt the rage bubble up and outwards from his chest. “Fuck. Fuckfuck _fuck_.” He slammed his hands on the table and let out a loud snarl, more like an enraged animal than human and for once, Derek didn’t try to calm him. “You were supposed to be  _watching him_ -”

“We  _were_!” Snarling in frustration, Bancroft fisted his hands in his hair and clenched his jaw, eyes darting around the enclosure. “We had him on surveillance  _every second_  he was out of his room, and if he’d stepped out of line  _at all_  we would have searched there as well.”

“And now? Have you searched there  _now_?” Logan was practically vibrating with fury, the only thing keeping him from flying at the Hanover was the knowledge that Bancroft had answers that he needed to find Julian again. It was difficult to remember, though, when Bancroft winced and nodded, avoiding Logan’s gaze.

“We did. He -” Bancroft broke off and licked his lips, swallowing nervously. “His closet was full of pictures of Julian, some even taken in the facility, and we found a contract under his desk for a hit on Julian. It was canceled just before our previous meeting.” Another sigh. “He must have had this planned  _weeks_  ago, but was delayed by the added surveillance.”

Snarling, Logan lunged across the table, hands barely curling in the fabric of Bancroft’s uniform before he was intercepted by Amos, who wrapped his arms around Logan’s torso from behind, pinning his arms closely to his sides.

“Jesus Christ, Wright, calm down -”

“ _No_ ,” snarled Logan, fury coursing through his veins as he struggled against Amos. Blaine and Willis’s added help were the only thing keeping Logan secure. “I followed the rules, went to fucking Bancroft instead of taking care of it myself, and now Julian’s missing, taken by some psychotic  _fuck_  who has a goddamn  _shrine_  to Julian in his room along with a fucking  _hit_ , things that should have been found  _weeks_  ago so we could’ve avoided this entire shit-storm, so  _don’t tell me to fucking calm down!_ ”

“Shit,” was all Amos said, grunting as he fought against Logan’s violent strength. “Seigerson -”

“You’re not getting any help from me,” Derek said cooly, and the snarl on Logan’s face turned into a vicious smile at the tone, knowing that Derek was just as pissed as he was. Just more contained. “Just be glad that I’m not trying to rip Bancroft’s intestines out as well.”

 _That_ , Logan decided, sounded like a very good idea. With another growl, he threw his weight forward, loosening Amos’s grip around his arms just enough to elbow him in the side and rip out of his grasp. He easily shoved Blaine and Willis out of the way with a hand on each of their sternums, and once again grabbed the front of Bancroft’s Uniform, twisting at the waist to crush Bancroft into the ground and straddling him, holding the brunet down with one hand and curling the other into a fist and drawing it back with a snarl.

But he was stopped once again, this time by two pairs of hands restraining his arm, not letting the punch follow through.

“We’ll help you get him back, Knave,” a familiar voice said softly, warm breath brushing Logan’s ear.

“We know how important your Cheshire Kitten is to you -” said an identical voice, a small distance behind the first.

“- and how angry you are that he was taken.”

“But you can’t help him if you alienate those that can help you by starting a war.”

"It would be a good distraction," Logan gritted out, viciously enjoying the wary expression on Bancroft's face. It would look so much better with a black eye.

"No it wouldn't," the twins said in unison. Their hands started pulling him up, and Logan almost didn’t follow, his entire body vibrating with the need to  _hurt_  Bancroft for letting things get so far. But he knew the twins were right, that starting a war would actually lengthen the time it took to find Julian, and they need to move  _fast_.

So he allowed the twins to pull him up, though he continued to watch Bancroft like a hawk. The sudden drop of tension in the yard was almost palpable, and the faint murmur of conversations started up again, now that the factions weren’t afraid of a sudden fight breaking out. Ethan still kept a tight grip on his arm, while Evan moved in front of him, placing his hands carefully on Logan’s chest and watching him warily, blocking his view of Bancroft.

“We’ll talk to Caterpillar, see if we can find out where they went,” Evan said, the usual smile absent from his face. “But it may take some time -”

“- and the lock-down is going to be difficult to get around for a week or so,” Ethan continued, releasing Logan’s arm and standing before him as well. One of his hands replaced Evan’s on Logan’s chest, and they tangled their fingers together at their sides as they watched Logan with bright blue eyes. “So we need you to calm down -”

“- and save your rage for when we catch Clavell.”

Logan didn’t speak for a moment, then closed his eyes and breathed deeply, opening them again as he exhaled with a curt nod. The twins grinned and darted quickly forward, pressing a quick kiss to his cheeks. Logan, used to such behavior after knowing them for so long, just glared at them for the action. It was wise of them to not try to pet him this time.

Though he had mostly calmed the part of him clamoring for blood, Logan wasn’t quite ready to let Bancroft off so easily. As soon as the twins moved, he stepped forward, using his momentum to punch Bancroft in the jaw, the faint crunch of bone and thud of Bancroft hitting the ground enough to sooth a bit more of the rage still twisting in his stomach. Shaking his hand out, he watched with satisfaction as Bancroft pushed himself up on his forearm and grimaced, rubbing his jaw.

Logan brushed away the hands grabbing his shirt and glared coldly down at the other boy. “You’d better hope that we get Julian back alive and whole, Bancroft, or I’m taking it out of your hide.”

Logan then nodded evenly to Amos, who was still watching him warily, then jerked his head at Derek, motioning the other Stuart to follow. Looking across the again-silent courtyard, he caught the eye of Bailey, and motioned for him to join as they walked across the courtyard and back into the Stuart building.

It was time for a meeting of their own.

* * *

_The bed was soft beneath him, high-quality cotton sheets brushing gently against his skin as he moved, small jolts of sensation running up from below to his brain in sweeping waves, and he purred, wriggling lightly against the bed. There was warm skin sliding across his belowthehead, and he smiled, delighting in the comforting feeling._

_Someone laughed above him, and he looked up into a wash of blackcreamgrey, white flashing against pink as the figure laughed, then spoke, “You’re so beautiful, darling Julian. So very beautiful,” and he smiled again at the kind words, then blinked at the tingle beginning at the front of his brain. He knew the euphoria was going to leave, the dancing laughing happiness was going to fade into something and he didn’t want it gone though he couldn’t think of_ why _-_

_Julian screamed as he came out of the rush, trying to push at the chest above him but he couldn’t, his one hand not bound to the bed too weak from the drugs rushing through him to help. Struggling didn’t work either, as the bigger boy held his hips down as he moved above him, and Julian whimpered in unwanted pleasure, tears leaking out of the corner of his eyes and he choked down a strangled sob, not wanting to give Adam the satisfaction of seeing him break._

_“Ssh,” Adam said, stroking his hands down Julian’s stomach and thighs, and Julian moaned, half horrified and half relieved as he felt the rush tingling up his spine, wanting the escape but so_ terrified _of the vulnerability._

_Julian closed his eyes, waiting for the small crest of sensation then -_

_A smile formed on his face, watching the swirls of blacknotblack dancing around in the darkness, and he wondered why it was so dark, then he moved something and he could see the ceiling, parallel lines breaking up the patterns of wooden texture and he giggled, following the lines with his eyes as something moved in the edges of his vision, and little bursts of blackcolorblack danced across his vision._

_Someone laughed. “So beautiful.”_

* * *

In the end, it took the Han and the twins twelve days to find where Clavell had taken Julian. Twelve days of lock-down, of being so careful to keep everyone just the right amount good and rowdy, to lull the guards into a sense of complacency so they’d be able to leave at the drop of a hat.

Logan was pacing in his room, when it happened. Pacing had become his favorite past-time since Julian had gone missing; the only thing he’d been able to do, really, with his mind buzzing and simultaneously blank, unable to concentrate for fear of Julian’s safety, unable to think of anything coherently. At a sound from his door, he looked up, blinking as the twins slunk into his room, expressions serious. It was the first time anyone had seen more then a flash of the two, who’d taken their promise to Logan seriously. They'd been busy working with Han to find any scrap of information about where the two missing boys had disappeared to.

“Evan, Ethan,” he said, brain still slightly buzzed. “What -”

“We found them,” Ethan said, their hands clasped tightly together. Logan froze.

“Han was able to track them via Satellite -”

“- to a cabin in the mountains -”

“- probably owned by Clavell’s parents.”

They both shifted nervously, pressing closer together and watching Logan carefully. “We’ll have to wait until second shift before we can leave -”

“- but with how we’ve played the guards, it shouldn’t be too hard to get out.”

Logan was already nodding, glancing around his room for necessary equipment when he realized -

“Second shift?” he snapped, glaring furiously at the twins. “That’s in  _two hours_! We need to leave  _now_  -”

“Logan,” Evan said softly, sympathetically, “we have to be careful, or they’ll catch us too soon, and Jules will be on his own.”

They were right, Logan knew, but he still wanted to rush out of the facility  _right that second_  and find whatever hellhole Clavell had run off to and rip him to pieces. But he couldn’t, so he took in a steadying breath and pinched his nose.

“Fine,” he bit out, not happy be resigned to waiting. Hell, he had already waited two-hundred and eighty-eight hours, what’s two more? “What else needs to be taken care of?”

That question was how he spent most of those dreaded two hours arguing with Derek about why he was required to stay and keep the peace while Logan ran off to save Julian.

Without him.

“You’re taking fucking  _Houston_  but I have to stay here?” he’d argued, and Logan really,  _really_  wanted to agree, but:

“You and Jules are the only ones I’d trust to keep the peace while I’m gone - no offence, Bailey, but you kind of have no spine - and with Jules and I gone, you’re the only one who can keep everyone in line.”

Bailey had just grinned and continued to drink his Apple Juice - which Logan felt backed his point up quite nicely - but Derek wasn’t as pacified, and by the time the two hours were up Logan was ready to strangle his right-hand man, despite understanding how frustrating the entire thing must be.

It ended with Derek and Logan panting and red-faced, facing each other from across the room. Bailey and the twins had long since disappeared, and that was probably the only reason why Derek let his face crumple. He sat back hard on the bed and ran his fingers through his hair.

“Just bring him back,” Derek said, and Logan sighed and sat down next to him, bumping their shoulders together.

“You know I will.”

Derek nodded, and when he looked up, his eyes were hard. “And make sure you kill that bastard for taking him.”

The grin that passed over Logan’s face made Derek swallow and glance quickly away, a bit of color draining from his skin. “You know I will.”

* * *

_“Let me go!” Julian screamed, curling up on the bed away from the other boy, brown eyes glued to the syringe Adam held in one hand, pressing as close into the wall as he could when the boy started to walk closer. “Stop - no,_ no _don’t -”_

_“Hush, my Angel,” Adam cooed, and reached out to stroke Julian’s hair._

_Julian snarled, lashing out with his nails as he batted Adam’s hand away, satisfied at the hiss of pain and instinctive retraction of the hand. It didn’t last long, however, as Adam snarled right back, insane rage making his eyes burn as he lunged forward, pinning Julian to the wall by his throat._

_“This is why you need the drugs, my Angel,” Adam snarled, cutting of the air to Julian’s lungs, and Julian whimpered, tugging and scratching at the hand around his throat as his vision started to go fuzzy around the edges. “Because they calm you down, keep you docile until I can undo all the things that_ he’s _put in your brain!”_

 _The world started to fade to black, Julian’s strength waning until he was barely pawing at Adam’s arm, and just as he was about to tip over into unconsciousness he was released, air rushing down his abused throat like blades and into his heaving chest, pushing the blackness edging his vision slowly away. Blood rushed through his ears like the ocean, covering all but a loud ringing sound but Julian could still_ feel _, and though he was powerless to stop it, weak from drugs and hunger and strangulation, he could feel as Adam forced his arm straight and plunged the needle into his skin, pumping clear liquid into his veins._

_The last thing he saw before the rush hit him was Adam silently contemplating the bloody scratches on his arm, then the sharp hunting knife proudly displayed on the far wall._

* * *

Sneaking out of the facility was easy - they’d done it enough that Logan could probably do it in his sleep. The hard part was the long drive, where Logan had nothing to do, and no space in which he could expend his agitated energy.

They’d been in the car three hours already, but the GPS hidden in the car told them their destination was getting close. The first half of the drive Logan had spent twitching and fidgeting, snarling at anyone who so much as  _looked_  at him sideways. But now he was calm, that same energy that made him impatient now settled low in his gut, clearing his mind and making it sharp, focused. The twins - who were sitting in the back of the stolen car with him - had taken to glancing at him repeatedly, curling close together as far away as the small vehicle would allow, arms wrapped around each other. In their eyes was a mix of curiosity and alarm, the second making a slow smirk cross his features, and the alarm grew momentarily as the two huddled away from him, but the curious interest was quickly back as they watched him stare out the window.

They looked cute like that, Logan decided, staring at them for a short while out of the corner of his eyes - all bundled up close, their clear blue eyes peeking out from under golden hair, curious but wary like children. He supposed that’s how they used to act - like spoilt children who didn’t take kindly to getting their way. But unlike most, their entitlement to what they wanted ended up destructive, into violence and blood instead of pleading and petty rebellion.

The manipulation, however, was much the same.

Logan’s eyes snapped to the front of the car as the boy sitting in the passenger seat moved, dark brown eyes - so different from Julian’s light toffee - joining the twins in watching Logan’s every move. Though Logan knew that Houston had been observing him since he’d fallen still, it was nonetheless a little unnerving for the strange boys attention to be so obviously focused on him, so he stared back at the pale boy, both in challenge and in question.

“You’re still angry,” was all the boy said after a few tense minutes.

A flash of fury darted up from Logan's core, and he narrowed his eyes. “Of course I am. Why would you think otherwise?”

Houston tilted his head to the side, black hair brushing gently against his pale skin, seeming to calculate everything he was seeing in Logan and confused by his findings. “I’ve never seen you this…  _collected_ when angry. It’s…”

“A bit alarming,” Evan chimed in.

“And very hot,” Ethan supplied, though he and his brother didn’t move from their spot against the other car door.

Sending the twins a level glance, he spoke to Houston, “I’ve had time to prioritize since… Since.” Blinking, he turned back to watch out the window at the long lines of trees. “A little bit of time can do wonders in focusing the rage.”

In his peripheral vision, Logan could see Houston glance with an unreadable expression to Bancroft, who just nodded, still focused on the road. Then Houston, with one more long glance at Logan, turned back to the road and began to re-check his many weapons in silence.

Another half-hour passed in silence, before Bancroft softly said, “We’re here.”

Logan nodded silently, eyes fixed on the large cabin. It wasn’t what he had expected, but then he supposed that Clavell’s parents were actually normal people, unlike the parents of the majority of the detainees in Dalton who had enjoyed their own stint in the reform school. They probably enjoyed the cabin for simple winter retreats - nothing sinister like what their son had decided to use it for.

Moving purposefully, Logan opened the car door and stepped out into the clean air, the turning of seasons making the temperature comfortably warm. He heard the soft crunch of gravel, the echoing click of car doors closing as his companions joined him, and in silence they walked to the cabin, watching the windows closely for any sign of attack. Clavell didn’t seem too worried about interruptions, but Logan guessed that he wasn’t expecting anyone so soon, if at all. The mountain retreat wasn’t a well known one, used for selective clients who were in-the-know. In fact, Logan was almost surprised that none of the detainees in Dalton had heard of the place, despite how many different backgrounds the group represented.

Nodding at the twins, Logan quickly readied his gun and took even, calming breaths as he waited for the door to be picked. He glanced up at Houston and Bancroft, who also had their guns at the ready, and Houston looked to have quite a few throwing-knives at hand. The twins swiftly made work of the lock - probably faster than anyone else could open it with a key - and sent a warning glance at Logan, who understood. He braced himself for what could be inside, and entered the Cabin.

Despite his mental preparation and long drive, Logan could feel rage clawing at his calm and threatening to rip it apart altogether. A steady thrum of violence spread under his skin and tried to drive him to act, to move, to  _kill_  the bastard holding Julian.

“Wright,” snarled Clavell, tightening his grip around Julian’s waist, bringing the lax body closer against his chest. The serrated edge of a large hunting knife was pressed against the vulnerable skin of Julian’s throat. “I should have guessed you’d try to take him back.”

Logan’s jaw clenched as he took in Julian’s form, the constricted pupils and drying tear tracks running down his face. White cloth was binding one of his hands to the bed while the other lay limp against the sheets. He had dark bruises under his eyes, and his skin had a sickly pallor to it, as if he hadn’t been well taken care of. It wasn’t surprising, the lack of care, but it made Logan sick all the same. Julian was shaking, eyes wide as they stared at Logan, though Logan doubted that he knew exactly what he was seeing.

But what really drew his ire, what made him want to rip Clavell’s throat out with his bare hands, were the faint lines of gently bleeding cuts that ran across the skin of his legs and arms, tracing delicate red patterns against light tan. There was an already-dried pool of white against Julian’s stomach, directly over his half-hard cock, and Logan had no doubt that if he moved just a bit to the side, he’d see that Julian was open and wet, probably full of the bastard’s -

“I’ve already told you I protect me and mine, Clavell,” Logan growled, shaking with the need to rip apart the boy who dared to use Julian in such a way. “You’re not going to get away with what you’ve done to him.”

“ _Protect_  him?” Clavell asked with a scoff, keeping his eyes on Logan’s as he rubbed his cheek against Julian’s hair. Julian whimpered and tried to move away, but was swiftly stopped by the arm around him. “You’ve done nothing but  _break_  him. You’re killing him, and you don’t even  _know it_.”

Logan glared. “High talk from someone who’s forcing drugs into him -”

“I’m not talking about  _drugs_ , you stupid fuck. He’s one of Hollywood’s biggest actors - he could probably get them easier and cheaper without you. No,” Clavell was gently stroking Julian’s side, watching Logan with a psychotically superior smirk. “I’m talking about why he comes to  _you_ , even after he swears he’ll never do drugs again. The drugs are a symptom,  _Wright_ ; you,” he said with a snarl, and pointed the knife at Logan, “ _you_  are the  _disease_.”

As soon as Clavell removed the knife from Julian’s throat, Logan was in motion, dropping his gun and lunging forward at the same time that a shot rang out and Clavell screamed, blood blossoming from his leg in a violent burst. Logan grabbed the hand with the knife, using his momentum and Clavell’s shocked pain to drag him away from Julian and onto the floor, straddling the dark-haired boy and trying to wrest control of the knife. Clavell, unfortunately, had recovered from the burst of pain, endorphins and adrenaline clearing his brain. His grip on the knife tightened, the shock on his face replaced by an angry snarl and he threw his weight forward, jabbing the knife towards Logan. Logan was barely able to dodge, a sharp bite of pain dancing across the side of his neck when the knife easily slit the skin.

The spark of pain helped to clear Logan’s mind, and he twisted the hand holding Clavell’s other wrist down, a shark-like grin lighting his face as he felt the bones shift and crack, the barely-muffled cry of pain. Clavell bucked beneath him, and was just strong enough to dislodge Logan’s balance and drag the knife down to plunge it into Logan’s shoulder. Logan gasped, but regained his balance and grip on Clavell’s hand, gritting his teeth and panting harshly through his nose as he forced Clavell’s hand still. Warm, sticky blood flowing from his shoulder made holding the knife steady difficult.

“He loves you,” Clavell whispered, and in his eyes was pure  _hate_. “And I’m going to save him from it.”

That drew a strained laugh from Logan, amused despite himself. “Save him?” he asked through clenched teeth, pushing aside the shock of the revelation to deal with later. “How? By kidnapping and  _raping_  him -”

“He  _likes_  what I’m doing to him -”

“I’m sure his body does.” Swallowing down a grunt of pain, Logan threw his weight forward, dragging the knife out his shoulder, ignoring the warm liquid that started to leak out, “But with how drugged up he is, I doubt he even knows what’s going on. And tell me, Clavell - what happens when he’s sober? Is he still enjoying it  _then_?”

A flash of something darted across Clavell’s eyes, but before anything came out of his mouth there was a soft, tentative call from the side of the room. A broken, strained, but very familiar voice asking, “Logan?”

It was such a small thing, but it caught Clavell’s attention, grey eyes searching for the owner of the voice with an angry glare, head starting to turn in Julian’s direction. But just like before, the distraction was all Logan needed. Releasing the cracked wrist, Logan covered his hand around Clavell’s and  _twisted_ , wrenching the knife around so it was pointing down at Clavell. He then  _pushed,_  using all his strength to force the knife down and into Clavell’s throat, sheathing the knife in his trachea until the handle touched Clavell's neck.

Frozen in surprise, Clavell blinked up at Logan, who could feel Clavell’s hand twitching around the knife beneath his own. Smiling viciously, Logan tightened his grip and turned the knife, and Clavel gasped in pain, then coughed. Logan watched with satisfaction as blood mixed with saliva and bubbled around his lips as he tried to gasp for air. And Logan watched with satisfaction as Clavell slowly stopped moving, as the light in his eyes, the hatred for Logan burning behind even the shocked pain and instinctive panic, slowly faded into nothing.

Only then did Logan move, leaving Clavell laying on the floor in a pool of blood to walk towards Julian, who the twins had freed from the bindings and had curled up between them on the floor. They were petting Julian carefully, trying to sooth his trembling and regulate his breathing. Julian seemed to be all right, but Logan was currently very aware of just how good Julian had always been at keeping him in the dark. Crouching before him, Logan took a close look at his friend, taking in the chapped lips, the bloodshot eyes that watched him like he was something magical.

“He’s not badly hurt,” Ethan said. Logan nodded at him absently, running his hands over Julian’s soft skin, feeling to make sure nothing was broken despite the twin’s assurances. As his hands glided over Julian’s skin the slender boy trembled, and a faint moan slipped past his lips when Logan’s hands brushed down his torso. He arched into the touch, his glazed eyes still fixed on Logan, and Logan could see him starting to harden fully, the drugs taking away any shame he might have normally had. Logan ignored the sounds and movements as best he could, sliding his hands carefully down Julian’s thighs then parting and lifting them to make sure he wasn’t torn. It was a great relief to see he wasn’t, that despite Clavell’s insanity he hadn't hurt Julian too badly.

“You should have let me deal with him,” Bancroft said, and Logan glanced back to see him standing over Clavell’s corpse. “He was one of mine.”

Sending the twins a warning look - they were starting to become interested in Julian’s movements and the breathy sighs he kept making - Logan pulled Julian close, wrapping him up in the sheets tangled around his calves before standing, holding Julian bridle-style. “He hurt one of mine, Bancroft. I wasn’t going to let him get away with it.”

Bancroft shrugged, watching curiously as Julian snuggled closer to Logan and nuzzled at his neck, then taking out a phone and hitting a speed-dial. When Bancroft turned around to speak to whoever was on the other line - clean up, most likely - Logan started towards to door, passing Houston, who was cleaning his gun and watching the body of Clavell as if he thought it was going to get back up. He’d barely gotten into the car, settling his precious bundle carefully on his lap, when Julian came out of the high and started to struggle wildly, cursing when the sheet prevented any movement.

“Julian, stop,” Logan ordered softly, and Julian abruptly  _did_ , blinking owlishly at Logan as if not sure he were real. “You’re fine.”

“Oh,” was all he got in reply, then Julian started shaking. “I thought - I thought it was a bad nod. I didn’t - is Adam -”

“Dead.” Logan pulled Julian close, tucking the brunet’s head into his neck. He was incredibly grateful it was his undamaged side the boy was facing. “Don’t worry about him.”

Julian nodded, and breathed in a shuddering breath, curling closer to Logan’s chest. “You’re hurt.”

“He missed anything important. I’ll be fine in just a bit,” dismissed Logan, and he started to card his fingers through Julian’s hair, the corner of his lip twitching up in a small smile when Julian started to purr. “How long ago did he inject you?”

There was a second where Julian tensed, then he relaxed again, butterfly kisses tickling Logan’s skin as he got more comfortable. “Dunno. But I think I have a nod or two left before it’s gone.” His voice was beginning to slur, and Logan guessed it was exhaustion as much as it was the euphoria starting to kick back in, so he pulled Julian closer and continued his light petting.

“Go to sleep,” he said, dancing his fingers up and down Julian’s side and making the boy shudder against him. “It’s going to be a long drive to the hospital.”

Julian made a displeased noise about their destination, but obeyed readily, his breathing evening out in a few short moments and his body going boneless against Logan’s. It was then that the rest of the group entered the car, and Logan grudgingly let the twins pet Julian’s calves, but glared at them whenever their hands tried to wander any higher.

“A few of my friends in the force will make sure to be on the team,” Justin said softly and started up the car. “Though I doubt they’ll be necessary - it’s pretty clear what happened in there.”

Logan nodded. “We need to get him to a hospital - I’m worried about the cuts and if Clavell accidentally gave him something.” Unsaid was whether it was given by needle, or other means. “Also, I’m not sure which drug he’s on or how much he was feed.”

The twins looked grave, eyes flicking back to the cabin and hands twitching towards their pockets. Knowing the Twins, they probably wanted to set the place alight, not leave anything left of Clavell. But ensuring Julian’s safety came first, so they all settled into silence as the car rumbled down the road, each lost in their own thoughts.

* * *

_He came to sensing in something shaking, vibrating around him like movement, and he felt strangely comforted by motions. But that could also be because whatever he was on was warm and smelled good._

_“He’s awake,” someones said, and he watched as two identical people grinned at him, like he was something amazing and new and fun, and he couldn’t help but smile back. Something trailing across his head made a rumble echo in his chest and vibrate up his throat, which in turn made him giggle._

_It tickled._

_“So I see,” a deeper sound said, and the warmth beneath him moved, vibrated differently from the movement around them and he was shifted closer, so he happily nuzzled against the softness against his cheek and licked it, which made the warmth chuckle. He liked the sound, so he licked again, but was drawn away by the something on his head._

_Blinking, he looked up to the warmth - the person - he was on, and smiled brightly, knowing that the_ goldgreen _person would take care of him, would make sure that nothing bad would happen, like sometime before. He frowned. The thought made him not happy, but he couldn’t help but wonder why it did. Squirming, he tried to think about the time Before, but was distracted by warmth against his cheek, of something brushing against his mouth._

 _He blinked again, and looked up to see green watching him, and he caught the thing - the_ finger _\- with his lips, humming happily as he licked across the skin, doing it again when the green went darker, a flash of something delicious and dangerous darting up to his mind._

 _“Go back to sleep, Jules,” the_ goldgreen _said, and he knew he wanted to make the person happy, wanted to please so very badly and so he did. Curling up against the warmth, he brought his hands up to play with the fingers by the one still in his mouth, humming happily as he licked and sucked at the slender digit._

_The person chuckled again, and Julian squirmed delightedly at the soft vibrations, eyelids growing heavy as he felt himself go distant, then drift back to senselessness._

* * *

**_| One Month Later |_ **

Julian was told that the first few hours he was in the hospital, Logan had refused to let him out of his sight. It wasn’t until the Warden had shown up with a large group of guards in tow that they’d been able to get the violent blond out of the hospital, and even then it had taken a few hours to talk sense into him, to convince him he wouldn’t be punished for leaving the facility as long as he went back without any bloodshed. He was told that Logan had been patched up quickly, that his wounds were mostly superfluous, and he’d probably recover quickly. Even the stab wound in his shoulder - which had caused Julian quite a bit of distress, when he'd found out - had turned out to have missed anything important.

Julian, on the other hand, had taken a while longer to recover. The psychological withdrawls of both the pot and coke he’d been on while at Dalton still had to be gone through, despite the fact he’d had neither in the time he’d been captive. Added onto that already unpleasant experience, the Dilaudid that Adam had used to keep him docile had to be flushed out of his system as well, in a grueling two weeks that drove his body hard. Withdrawal combined with the lack of food he’d been able to consume while at the cabin meant he’d been placed on a drip to ensure he wasn’t dehydrated, and was replacing a lot the nutrients he'd lost.

The physical symptoms were the main reason Julian had previously stayed away from opiates - his nightmares were already a problem, but compounded upon the insomnia from withdrawal meant he was barely scraping by on a couple hours at night. The one time the nurses had forced sleeping drugs into his system he’d kept half the wing up by his constant screaming, but they’d had to do it again a week later, when his sleep-deprivation delirium made him cringe away from anyone who entered the room. Particularly those with dark hair.

The first time his father had come to visit had been…  _interesting_.

Luckily, the Dilaudid withdrawal had passed by now, as well as the constant supervision the hospital had him under. A sardonic grin flitted over his face. His acting skills had been quite useful, railing just the right amount for the right duration of time, slowly settling in to obedience so they thought they’d ‘fixed’ him, thought that he was getting better and they could begin to leave him alone.

Julian sighed and stared up at the ceiling. He’d been so, so careful to not attract undue attention, but he was tired, and it was time. Licking his lips, he glanced up at the door with an instinctive, though unnecessary, re-check that no-one was standing there watching him. He swallowed, eyes still glued to the door as he removed a pushpin - unwisely left unattended by a nurse - from its hiding place in the front upper corner of the bedside table, where it wouldn’t obstruct the drawer.

Taking a fortifying breath, Julian dragged the sharp metal down the inside of his wrists, biting back a pained whimper. It  _hurt_. But, he thought, gasping for breath as the warm blood began pouring out of the wound, it would be worth it.  _So_  worth it, to not have to think anymore, to not have to know that no matter what he did, it wouldn’t be enough. That he’d never be good enough. It was bad enough that Logan wouldn’t touch him after Wang - his brain skittered away from the name, pushing back the horrible memories associated with it - but now with Adam, he doubted Logan would be able to  _look_  at him. Because he was broken and dirty, unable to scrub the layer of disgust that caked his skin, seeping in to contaminate his every cell. He’d tried, one of the first days in the hospital, to clean it off, but the nurses had stopped him, grabbing his wrists and restraining him after he’d nearly scrubbed off his first layer of skin.

But he felt cleaner now, dragging a deep cut into his other wrist and letting the infection spill out with his blood, warm and sticky. He was surprised it looked as clean as it did, dark red not marred by anything dirty. After putting the pin on the side table, Julian leaned back in his bed, the endorphins from pain a much better drug than any he’d taken. He closed his eyes and smiled, feeling the strength drain out of him as he sank back into the mattress. Although he knew he would be getting cold soon, as the warm liquid continued to trickle out of his wrists, but he was so comfortable that he didn’t try to bring up the blanket from around his waist.

Julian was so busy drifting, that he didn’t notice he wasn’t alone until there was a soft, furious, “What the  _fuck_?”

Blinking his eyes open - they were so  _heavy_  - his gaze meandered up to see Logan standing in the doorway, his attention focused on the steady stream of blood draining from Julian’s wrists. Julian winced. Of all the people he’d been expecting to find him,  _Logan_  was not the one; nor was he the one Julian  _wanted_  to have found him, and not so soon. Struggling to sit up, Julian started to raise his arm to ward away anything Logan would do, but his strength was so far gone that he was barely able to twitch his arm before Logan was on him, straddling Julian’s hips and grabbing his torn wrists. He ignored Julian’s yelp of pain as he pushed them tight against the mattress, trying to stop the bleeding.

Crying out again, Julian tried to struggle, pulling weakly at his wrists to stop it from  _hurting_ , tears of frustration and pain beginning to leak from his eyes. But Logan just cursed, releasing one of Julian’s wrists long enough to push the call button and unplug a cord from the heart monitor, causing the equipment to start screaming an alarm.

“No,” Julian moaned as he hears the quick patter of feet outside his room, then a gasp as a nurse rushed in, surprised by Logan’s presence.

“What are you -”

“He needs bandages,  _now_ ,” Logan ruthlessly cut in, squeezing Julian’s wrists hard enough that he can feel the bones protesting, but the flow of blood had all but stopped. The Nurse must have seen what Logan was doing, for she paled, then rushed to the door to shout to someone outside. The next thing Julian knew, the woman was beside Logan, and pressing thick bandages against the wound, and there was something tight on both of his arms, just above the elbow. Julian blinked again, and suddenly there were more people in the room, but Logan was still over him, and all he could see was is  _green_  as Logan’s voice was in his ear. It drowned out the buzz of others in the room and ordered him to  _keep his eyes open, damn it, Jules, stay with me_  and Julian  _tried_ , he tried  _so hard_  like he always did for Logan. ALways wanting to be good enough, wanting Logan to  _notice_  him. But there was black creeping along the edge of his vision, spreading closer and closer to the bright green of Logan’s eyes. Julian couldn’t do anything but whisper Logan’s name, seeing the bright green go wide with fear, before the black swallowed him whole.

* * *

Blinking awake, Julian knew he wasn’t alone. It wasn’t a strange sensation - he’d been on constant watch since his failed attempt two weeks ago - but a quick glance at the clock told him that the last orderly would have been in less than an hour ago, and he still had thee hours until the next check. Pulse quickening, he glanced around the room, quickly spotting a human-shaped shadow in the far corner, standing still and watching.

Gritting his teeth, Julian fought to regulate his breathing, feeling the quickening thrum of his heart as his adrenaline picked up because despite  _knowing_  that Adam was dead. Even having seen Logan stab him in the throat so long ago, his brain still told him that he was vulnerable and he needed to run, fight,  _hide_  -

“Who’s there?” he demanded, wincing when his voice broke half-way through the short sentence. There was a short pause where nothing happened, and Julian was just about to call for help when Logan stepped out of the shadows and walked slowly forward. As he did, he stared at Julian, eyes raking over his defenseless form. Despite the almost unreadable expression on his face, Julian could  _feel_  the anger around him, sparking through the air like some electric cloak surrounding his body. It filled the room with a dangerous edge that made Julian’s breath speed up, made him pull reflexively at the soft restraints binding him to the bed.

But despite the instinctive fear Julian felt clawing at his heart, there was something else that started to worm its way through his belly, his face going warm as a flush started to dance across his skin when he realized what it was. Shifting slightly, Julian swallowed, watching Logan through his lashes while hoping that the blond didn’t notice that he was  _aroused_ , his cock already half-hard beneath the blankets and his breath uneven.

“Julian,” Logan finally said, sitting down on the bed beside Julian, who tried to move away from the warmth radiating from the blond. With a smirk, Logan watched him try to squirm away, brushing his hand up Julian’s tense leg to grasp the blanket between two fingers. He drew it down slowly, inch by careful inch until Julian couldn’t  stand it anymore, and tried to draw his knees into his chest to avoid the revelation of what this was doing to him. But a warm hand dipped under the hospital gown to curl around his thigh and stop him, and when Logan started pushing his leg back down onto the mattress Julian had to look away, not wanting to see the disgust on Logan’s features when he saw what this was doing to Julian.

Eyes burning, Julian waited for Logan to see, to mock him and leave, never to come back again - but Logan just started to run his nails lightly up and down the sensitive skin of Julian’s inner thigh, moving with Julian when he squirmed and bit back a moan.

“Jules,” he said again, softer this time but no less commanding, “I’m not happy with what you did, you know. Though I suppose it’s for the best that I was there when it happened, and I didn’t learn after. I would _not_  have reacted well.” With every pass of nails against skin, Logan pressed harder, until Julian could feel the skin burning, and knew there would be bright red welts lingering there for hours after. He couldn’t help but whimper and squirm under the touch, completely hard from the strange mix of pain and pleasure streaking up his spine, blushing bright red at how shameless he was for it.

“I don’t want it to happen again, Julian,” Logan continued, and his fingers went soft again, but started to wander higher up his legs until he was brushing at the delicate skin where groin met thigh, trailing his fingers against the edges of his perineum to beside his balls, but always on that connecting line. “You’re upset, and I understand that - but you’re not allowed to run away from me, Julian. I won’t allow it.”

He was so hard it was almost unbearable, but Julian was powerless to do anything but press his head into the pillow, still facing away from Logan, and tug helplessly at his binds. He panted for air while Logan drove him insane with his small, teasing touches.

“Julian,” Logan said after a few moments of silence, “Look at me.”

Biting his lip, Julian didn’t move other than to writhe at the pleasure coursing through his body, refusing to meet Logan’s eyes and see whatever was there. The decision was taken out of his hands, however, as Logan apparently wasn’t in an indulgent mood. No longer teasing, Logan dragged his fingers through the curly hair at his groin to circle around the base of his cock and  _squeezed_ , the pressure just shy of painful. It wrung a soft cry from Julian throat, body tensing in surprise, but Logan didn’t relent.

“Look at me.  _Now_ , Julian.”

Swallowing heavily, Julian finally relented. He’d never been good at disobeying Logan, so really, why start now? His face was still flushed hotly, humiliated equally by his inappropriate arousal and by his inability to not respond to Logan’s orders. But he finally met Logan’s eyes, fighting against the urge to glance away immediately as he knew it would only displease the temperamental blond. With a faint smirk, Logan once again began moving his hand, loosening his grip from almost-painful to perfect as he stroked him slowly, and Julian was caught between the tantalizing movement, the intensity of Logan’s darkly possessive eyes, and Logan’s low voice, telling him -

“- you’re  _mine_ , Julian, and have been from the moment we met, I will protect you from  _anything_ , even if it’s from yourself. So you won’t be trying this again, Julian, is that -  _look at me_ ,” Logan growled, when Julian bit his lip and glanced away. He pulled roughly and Julian’s cock in anger, and Julian mewled and whimpered, spread his legs and arched his back at the harsh stroke. But he looked back at Logan despite the uncomfortable twist of his heart, mouth open and eyelids heavy while he panted for breath. He was so close he could almost  _taste_  it, and Logan must have seen it somehow because his touch became softer, keeping Julian just on the edge but not letting him tip over.

“I want you to promise me that you won’t do it again, my Julian,” he said, leaning closer with a hand braced against the bed beside Julian’s shoulder. “I won’t let you come until you promise.”

Julian whined and thrashed against his hold, trying to push up into Logan’s grip, trying to get that little bit  _more_  that he needed. But Logan was still alive because of his quick reflexes, and he moved with Julian’s jerky thrusts, keeping his pace steady despite everything Julian did to try to make him move faster. With an amused smirk at Julian’s desperate attempts for relief, Logan moved closer, his breath ghosting across Julian’s ear and making him shiver.

“I can do this for as long as it takes, Jules,” he whispered. “I can keep you just on the edge for  _hours_ , and you won’t be able to do anything about it. Unless you promise me you’ll be good, that you’ll not hurt yourself like that again, I’ll continue to tease you, and I might just stop long enough for you to catch your breath, to remember what it’s like to not be mindless with arousal before pushing you back again, until you need it more then you need to breath and then I’ll do it all over again, until -”

“ _Fuck_ , Lo,  _please_ ,” Julian sobbed out, screwing his eyes shut and pulling roughly against his binds, pushing his head backwards into the bed. “ _Please_  - I, I won’t, I  _promise_ , Logan, just let me -”

Logan drank in the rest of his pleas, molding his mouth over Julian’s in a deep kiss, all teeth and tongue and bruising intensity. Then he tightened his hand and stroked his thumb against the head of Julian’s cock, pressing the tip of his nail carefully against the slit, and the shock of minor pain was all Julian needed. He came with a sharp cry, the sound swallowed down by Logan as Julian shook apart, blood rushing through his ears and stars dancing across his vision at the intensity of it.

When he came back down from the orgasm, Logan was still kissing him, exploring his mouth like it was his right and privilege to do so. He was still carefully stroking Julian’s flaccid cock, and Julian whined into his mouth at the sharp bite of over-sensitivity, but didn’t pull away, letting Logan do as he wished.

It must have been what Logan wanted, as he let Julian go and pulled away from the kiss, smug satisfaction dancing through his eyes and his bruised lips curved in a pleased smirk. Julian watched as he stood and moved over to the small supply cupboards, rummaging around a bit until he turned back, tissues in hand. While Logan carefully cleaned him of evidence, Julian watched him through his lashes, still panting for breath and buzzed. Logan looked him back with hungry eyes, running his hands possessively over Julian’s sweat-slick skin after he tossed the tissues in the trash, wandering up under the loose hospital gown to dance over his stomach and ribs.

“What about you?” Julian asked when he once again trusted his voice, licking his lips and flushing warm when Logan chuckled at the question.

“Later,” was Logan’s response, and he tilted Julian’s head to the side with one hand, pulling the sheets back over Julian as he sucked a hickey into the skin behind his ear, careful not to leave too obvious of evidence behind.

Closing his eyes with a sigh, Julian hummed happily as Logan continued to suck and lick at his skin, strangely pleased at the small sign of possession. The odd sensation stopped, but his head was held still for a moment longer, until Logan made a pleased sound and moved away. Julian didn’t bother to open his eyes until he heard the sound of a window opening.

When he glanced over, he saw Logan carefully removing the screen and couldn’t help but ask, “How do you know I won’t do it again?”

That made Logan pause. However, when he turned around he wasn’t angry, instead an amused smirk played across his face as he once again moved towards Julian. He braced his hands on either side of Julian’s head and kissed him thoroughly, teasing Julian’s tongue with his until Julian was once again whimpering and moaning, pressing up against Logan’s mouth. Only then did Logan pull away, and simply said, “Because you can never say ‘no’ to me.”

A jolt of humiliation flashed through Julian at the blunt words, and he closed his eyes and turned his face away from Logan’s. Logan was correct, of course - but the fact that he knew about Julian’s unwavering obedience was… hard.

He winced at Logan’s soft laugh, but it was softened by Logan brushing the hair from his face, then stroking his fingers gently down Julian’s cheek and neck, down until he brushed the length of Julian’s collarbone.

Julian could still feel the warm brush of fingers long after Logan had gone and the night orderly came in to find the window wide open, drying the sweat from Julian’s skin.

* * *

Another month, and Julian was walking back through Dalton’s halls, his parents by his side to meet with Ramsey. Warden Sylvester, it seemed, did not deem him important enough for her time.

Thank  _god_.

His parents kept shooting him worried looks that sent his teeth on edge, and he was grateful when they finally reached the doors of Ramsey’s office and a voice called for them to enter when they knocked.

What he wasn’t expecting, however, was for  _Logan_  to be there as well, sitting calmly in one of the large red chairs with his head propped up by his fist and watching Julian walk in. His possessive gaze trailed slowly over the length of Julian’s body before Logan glanced over at Julian’s parents. He dismissed them quickly, his eyes returning to track Julian’s every move.

“Hello, Ms. Ramsey,” Julian’s father said, glancing over at Logan warily. “May I ask why this young man is present?”

“Of course,” Ramsey answered, brushing out non-existant wrinkles from her black slacks, then gesturing towards the other chairs in the room. “Please, have a seat.” Once they did she leaned forward, clasping her hands and bracing her elbows on her knees, watching the three with a somber gaze. “With Julian’s recent suicide attempt, we’ve decided that he should be put on twenty-four hour watch, to keep such a thing from happening again. Mr. Wright, here,” She said, gesturing towards Logan, who was still watching the proceedings with a languid boredom, “has volunteered to watch Julian during his stay here.”

Julian bristled, body tensing in humiliation and anger at the thought of Logan monitoring his every move. “No fucking way.”

“ _Language_ ,” his mother hissed, shooting him an annoyed glare. Turning back to Ramsey, she asked, “If my son is obviously against it, why should we trust that this boy will keep Julian safe?”

“Because he’ll be under my supervision,” Logan answered blandly, ignoring the look Ramsey sent him for the interruption. “I’m highly respected in our wing, so the rest of the boys won’t touch him for fear of my displeasure. The boys from other wings will be told to leave him alone as to not cause tension between the building. He’ll be safest with me.”

“He was also one of the boys who found and saved Julian,” Ramsey continued, skipping over the part about how they weren’t  _supposed_  to have been out. “And he refused to leave the hospital until he was sure of Julian’s continued safety.”

“I also was the one who found Julian, after his attempt,” Logan said, and Ramsey started along with Julian’s parents at that, the latter of whom were now looking curiously at Logan. “If I hadn’t been there, I doubt he would have survived.”

“Why would you have been there?” Julian’s mother asked.

Logan finally moved, straightening and tangling his fingers together over his thigh, looking for all the world like he was in charge, instead of being a detainee. “Julian and I met on our first day here, and we’ve been friends ever since. There aren’t many things I wouldn’t do to ensure Julian’s safety, and if keeping him by me at all times is what it takes to make sure he’s alive, then it’s not asking much. I’ll do it gladly, so long as it keeps Julian in relatively good health.”

Julian groaned. Logan was going to make a damned good politician one day, with his honeyed words and calm assurance. He'd easily glossed over his leaving the premise, and Julian's mother and father were already looking sold on the idea, pleased with the assurance that Julian would be taken care of. It was rather infuriating, and it was a good thing that Logan actually  _meant_  what he was saying, or else they may have signed his safety away to someone who would do nothing but hurt him.

“But are you sure you can watch over him?” his father asked, and Julian shot him a glare, which was ignored. “He’s not known for being the most…”

“Docile?” Logan supplied when Julian’s father seemed unable to find the right word. A slow smirk spread over Logan’s lips as he glanced at Julian, then back at his father. “Don’t worry about it. I can handle him.”

Julian growled. “Like  _hell_  you can -”

“Jules,” Logan warned, narrowing his eyes at Julian and lowering his voice, and Julian could only look away and try to bore a hole in the cement wall with the force of his glare. It didn’t help when his parents looked between him and Logan with incredulous expressions, both that Julian subsided so quickly, and that he wasn’t raging at the blond for using that nickname. Such an offence usually ended with shouting and broken furniture.

“All right,” his mother finally said, nodding decisively, and Julian cursed, glaring at an unrepentant Logan. In fact, Logan was looking rather pleased, like a cat who’d not only gotten the cream, but the canary as well. Ramsey was also looking pleased - as much as the somber woman  _could_  look pleased - and nodded towards Logan in dismissal.

Logan stood and, with a gracious nod in the direction of Julian’s parents, tugged Julian out of the room, ignoring the guards that started escorting them into the secured area. Still holding Julian’s arm firmly, Logan proceeded to lead Julian through Stuart’s halls, and Julian glowered behind him, stewing in his rage until he noticed where Logan was leading.

“Lo, why are we going to your room? I just want to go to sleep.”

“I know,” Logan said, giving Julian an unreadable look through the side of his eyes while opening the door to his room. “You will.”

With that, he shoved Julian unceremoniously inside, closing the door behind him. Julian had regained his balance, and was turning around to yell at Logan when he realized -

“Why the fuck is all my stuff in here?” he raged, glaring venomously at Logan. “Jesus Christ, Logan, you can’t have been fucking  _serious_  -”

“I was  _very_  serious,” Logan snarled back, his famous anger finally making an appearance as he started to stalk towards Julian. “ _You_  were the idiot who tried to kill himself, and I’m  _not_  going to give you a second to yourself if there’s  _any_  chance you’ll do it again!”

Wincing, Julian glanced away again, crossing his arms and curling into himself, unable to meet Logan’s eyes again. He heard Logan sigh, then the blond was crowding into his space, forcing him back until he was against the wall. He caught the wrist that Julian raised to push him away, holding it still. With his other hand he forced Julian’s chin up, ducking his head down a bit to catch Julian’s eyes.

“I’ve told you before that I’m not going to let anything happen to you,” he said lowly, and Julian’s mouth went dry at the intimacy of it, how close they were to each other. The feeling of Logan’s breath against his face and the intensity of Logan’s eyes sent a shiver down his spine. “Until I know for certain that you’ll be safe on your own, you’re going to have to deal with me hovering. It won’t be easy for either of us, but I’m not letting you go Jules. I won’t. You’re  _mine_.”

Unable to hold back the soft whimper that escaped his throat, Julian glared up at Logan and tried to push him off, not liking how submissive he was around the blond. Logan, however, wasn’t having any of it, and forced Julian’s wrist up, catching the other and pinning them to the wall above his head, pushing his leg between Julian’s when Julian tried to buck him off.

“And trying to avoid me won’t work,” Logan continued as if Julian hadn’t moved. “The rest of the Stuarts know to bring you back to me if they find you, and the other Wings know to inform me directly if you try to run to them. Also,” Logan said, shifting his weight and pressing closer when Julian again tried to push him off, raising an eyebrow and Julian’s unhappy growl, “they know that supplying you with  _anything_  will make me very,  _very_  angry. And no more night runs until further notice.”

“The  _fuck_?” Julian snarled, struggling wildly in Logan’s grasp. “You can’t just - I’m not your goddamn  _pet_ Logan!”

That drew a laugh from Logan, who then pressed even closer and nuzzled Julian’s head to the side to bite at his neck. “Oh but you are,” Logan said, lapping gently at the bruised skin then sucking sharply, making Julian gasp. “My own little pet kitten.”

Julian let out a strangled groan and pressed closer, but before they could do anything more, a knock sounded at the door. Logan huffed out an annoyed sound then spun Julian quickly around and threw him on the bed. Frozen in surprise, it took Julian a few seconds to respond, and by the time he started to stand from the bed, furious and ready to kill, Derek was already in the room and watching him carefully.

“He’s not happy with the new rules,” Logan drawled and Derek smirked at Julian with a careless shrug.

“Necessary precautions,” He said smoothly, eyes sparkling with amusement at Julian’s outraged sputtering. “I’m sure he’ll get used to it.”

“I’m right fucking  _here_  you asshole,” Julian spat at him, glaring at both the boys between him and the door, body tensed as he debated whether or not to attack them. He knew it was obvious to them that he was angry, and when he sprang forward Derek just laughed and grabbed him, flipping him easily onto the floor and pinning him there with his large frame. Julian swore and struggled again, really sick of having people pin him to whatever surface they wanted.

“It makes no. Fucking.  _Sense_ ,” he bit out, wriggling under Derek as he tried to worm his way out of the boy’s grasp.

A snort came from Derek, but he didn’t do anything other then continue to hold him down, and it was Logan who replied, matter-of-fact,  “You’re recovering from a highly traumatic experience -”

“Oh,  _fuck_  you -”

“- which probably brought up some memories of  _another_  highly traumatic experience that ended with you spiraling so hard you ended up with more problems then you came here with. Not wanting you on your own has  _everything_  to do with the fact you thought it necessary to take your own life to escape what happened, and suicidal tendencies, mixed with the fact that you’re still recovering physically from the hospital, means that you’re not going to be up to par on missions, and you might take too many dangerous, and unnecessary, risks. I think we’re being rather reasonable, actually.”

It was a rather logical argument, but - “And the drugs?” Julian sneered.

A flash of intense, unadulterated  _rage_  darted across Logan’s face and he went silent for a moment. “That,” he finally said, “Is because I don’t want any reminders of how you looked when Clavell had you.”

Julian blinked. Then, slowly, he stopped fighting against Derek and relaxed under him. Derek watched the two curiously, not letting Julian up as Logan walked over to kneel next to them. Long fingers reached out to glide carefully through Julian’s hair, and Julian’s eyes went half-lidded as he hummed at the touch, staring at Logan as he gazed back down at Julian, stroking a finger down to brush softly against the mark on his neck.

“Those are the rules now, Julian,” whispered Logan. “The sooner you get used to them, the easier things will be.”

Julian felt Derek’s weight leave, and he curled onto his side, closing his eyes as Logan continued to pet him carefully. He felt Derek’s solid thigh against his back as the boy sat behind him, and with his two friends’ voices murmuring softly to each other filling the air, Julian relaxed completely. FInally feeling safe for the first time in a long while, he fell asleep.

**Author's Note:**

> Title is from Framing Hanley's _Built for Sin_.


End file.
